LAURA MUIR, Scotland's brightest Olympic athletics medal prospect in a generation, imagines a race commentary as she trains, and confesses: "It drives me along a wee bit. I don't listen to music or anything, but the commentator's voice is in my head, going through the race, and before I know it, I'm running really quickly and have to stop myself."

That will be harder after today when Muir and her coach, Andy Young, arrive in Rio de Janiero. She is undaunted by the potential millstone of expectation. The Fife woman is second fastest in the world this year over 1500 metres, and runs the opening round next Friday. Not since Wyndham Halswelle went to the 1908 Olympics as World No.1 at 400m has a Scottish athlete been ranked higher as they lined up at any Olympic Games.

Scotland's first Olympic track and field champion, Halswelle took gold in the London Games in one of the most controversial races ever - a walkover, with no other participant. The three other finalists, all of them American, refused to start after illegal team tactics caused the final to be rerun. US blocking was responsible for the introduction of lanes.

Neither of Scotland's other individual Olympic champions, Eric Liddell (400m, 1924) and Allan Wells (100m, 1980), was ranked No 1. Liz McColgan (10,000m silver, 1988) arrived in Seoul ranked second to Olga Bondarenko and was out-sprinted by the Russian in the final. Next closest was Yvonne Murray who took bronze at 3000m having ranked third before her race in Seoul. South African Zola Budd had been a world record-breaker early in 1984, but flopped in Los Angeles after changing allegiance to Britain.

A 23-year-old Glasgow University veterinary medical student, Muir wrote out the UK 1500m record which by Kelly Holmes in completing the Olympic double in Athens 12 years ago. She clocked 3min 57.49sec, a second slower than this year's World No.1, Faith Kipyegon, the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth champion from Kenya.

Muir is unfettered by dreams to live up to. "I've always enjoyed athletics, but when I was younger I was not one of these stat geeks or knew much about the sport. I only went to athletics because a friend of mine did. I went along because it was a laugh."

She knew about Holmes and Paula Radcliffe, and her club, Dundee Hawkhill Harriers, boasted the iconic Liz McColgan, while hurdler Eilidh Child was ahead of her at Kinross High: "But I had not looked into what they'd done. I was just in my own little Scottish bubble, I guess. I had no aspirations of competing at their level. So many people grow up wishing they could compete at the Olympics. I wrote that off, never thought it could happen."

But during Glasgow 2014, we highlighted how Muir was now faster than Holmes at the same age at both 800 and 1500m.

Comparing young athletes' progress with that of established stars at the same age can be a dangerous indulgence, as Young knows. He was a pupil at Boclair Academy in Bearsden 22 years ago when he won the World Schools Gymnasiade 800m title. His time was faster than that of European and World indoor champion Tom McKean at the same age. Young never fulfilled his potential because of constant respiratory problems.

The Holmes comparison has now been spectacularly vindicated, however. Muir acknowledges breaking her record was "pretty special" but she has been here before. She was world leader shortly before her global debut, at the World Indoors in Poland, early in 2014. Though still second as she stood on the start line for her 800m heat she was eliminated. "I learned a lot from that," she said in her final exclusive interview before the Olympic lockdown. "The spotlight was on me quite a bit, and I struggled with that, but learned a lot.

"Going into the 1500m final in the Commonwealth Games later that year, I felt relaxed and was really enjoying it. I think I'd have performed really well had I not been tripped up there.

"Preparation for Glasgow was really good, and I brought that to the Worlds in Beijing [she finished fifth in the 1500m]." That was after fourth place, leading Britain to under-23 team gold, in the European cross-country.

"I had been able to run uninterrupted last year and it showed what I can do. The pressure will be different from Glasgow: no home crowd, but the expectation is there. I see expectation as a good thing now. People are thinking I will do well, and I see that as good, rather than a negative."

Though she dares to consider the possibility of a medal, she says: "I try to stay quite grounded, and take each race as it comes, and just focus on that race. The moment you start thinking it's the Olympics, it can get quite overwhelming. I have to get through the rounds, hopefully as easily as possible, and save it all for the final."

She accepts the life-changing potential of the next two weeks, "but I try to keep it under wraps. You can get a wee bit carried away, thinking: 'What if?' Until it's done, it's not there. There is no reason why I can't do really well in Rio. So I'll treat it as any other race, and try to enjoy it. I think: 'Why not reflect on it after I have finished competing?' I think that's probably the safest bet."

Muir had planned to lighten the load of vet studies this year, but then crammed in more work, studying for 10 hours a day and has just learned she has passed all her fourth-year exams. "I have some placements in September, but have taken a gap year to focus on the London World Championships. I'll have my fifth and final year after that."

Young's work is also on hold, with a year's unpaid sabbatical. He pays tribute to his employers, Glasgow Education Department, and says scottishathletics has been "very helpful."

An Active Schools Co-ordinator, he may have the option to extend the sabbatical to next year's World event. Supervising day-to-day training and camps for a serious academic student while holding down a day job, was challenging. Training is now better quality, more eyes-on. Camps in South Africa and Font Romeu in the Pyrenees which they left yesterday, are more easily accommodated. Muir now enjoys, "a rather substantial shoe contract", and fifth in last year's World final brought coach support from UK Athletics.

Young had spats with Sport Scotland and Scottish Athletics - even writing to the sports minister - over funding issues and how they have driven athletes out of Scotland. But he has mellowed.

Kipyegon heads the five women inside four minutes this year, but could finish only second when Genzebe Dibaba took World gold last year. The Ethiopian, ranked only fifth this season, covered the last 800m in 1:56.95 in a typically tactical Olympic final. Holmes, in 2004, is the only winner since 1992 to break 4.00. The winning time in London was the slowest in the event's history - by a woman subsequently banned for dopping.

Muir boasts a single Grand Prix victory over Kipyegon, last year.

Young yells at the TV when commentators suggest Muir must front-run because she lacks pace: "She is possibly the fastest in the field over 200 to 300 metres." She will need to be if Kipyegon and Dibaba are to be beaten.